Cal, Stanford and nocturnal madness

The Cardinal’s schedule isn’t as ridiculous as last year’s, when the networks scheduled seven night games and turned Christian McCaffrey into a phantom on the East Coast.

Photo: Michael Macor, The Chronicle

Television networks have spent the past several years hijacking the college football season. Oblivious to the beauty of 1 p.m. starts, cherished family outings and driving home in daylight, they seem intent on playing the whole thing in darkness.

We don’t know much about starting times for Cal and Stanford this season — which is inexcusable, by the way — but we do know this: So far, every game with a designated time will be played at night. What a complete disgrace.

Granted, the Cardinal’s schedule isn’t as ridiculous as last year’s, when the networks scheduled seven night games and turned Christian McCaffrey into a phantom on the East Coast. Nevertheless, it’s disturbing.

Almost as disturbing is the fact that the other game times aren’t set until a few days beforehand, so the networks can plot out their strategy. Trying to set aside your plans for those weekends? Sorry, out of luck.

It’s not that night games are so distasteful, particularly for fans who plan to watch everything at home. But where’s the balance? The Pac-12 negotiated a wildly lucrative TV deal, only to watch ESPN and Fox play the prime-time ratings game, tradition be damned. If you’re wondering why DirecTV has rejected the idea of carrying the Pac-12 Network, it’s that ESPN, Fox, CBS and NBC corral the most attractive games, leaving mostly scraps behind.

Here’s what amounts to good news: No more than four games that would have been played at 7 p.m. or later on the Pac-12 Network will be moved to new broadcast windows. But one of those options is 6 p.m. — as if that’s an improvement.

Hey, just noted something on Washington’s schedule: The Huskies play rival Washington State on Nov. 25 at 12:30. Must be a mistake. Must be 12:30 a.m.

Bruce Jenkins has written for the San Francisco Chronicle since 1973 and has been a sports columnist since 1989. He has covered 27 World Series, 19 Wimbledons and many other major events, including the Super Bowl, World Cup soccer, NBA Finals, four major golf tournaments and U.S. Open tennis championships.

He graduated from Santa Monica High School in 1966 and UC Berkeley with a B.A. in journalistic studies in 1971.